Tammy Duckworth

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, when House Republicans were confronted with concerns that H.R. 1 would threaten SNAP benefits for veterans, the Republican chairman of the House Agriculture Committee defiantly claimed: Our veterans are exempt from the SNAP work requirement, which is the law . . . and we're not changing it. Well, he spoke too soon because without a hearing, without notice, and certainly without good cause, Senate Republicans literally stripped away the very protection that House Republicans cited when arguing that veterans would not be harmed by this ugly bill. Senate Republicans are abandoning veterans, the homeless, former foster youth, and also parents with children above the age of 13-- because we all know teenagers don't have big appetites--to be beaten down with complex paperwork and confusing bureaucracy that has nothing to do with helping struggling Americans find work and, rather, is simply a cynical scheme to discourage those who served our Nation in uniform from receiving the safety net support they are eligible for under the law.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I ask that further reading of the motion be dispensed with.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, I have a motion to commit at the desk.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to honor a soldier's soldier, a person who taught me what kind of friend, what kind of helicopter pilot, what kind of leader I wanted to be--my friend, Randy Sikowski, sitting next to me here today. I would start off by telling some stories about Randy from our Army days, but--well, he knows me very well, as well as I know him, and he knows where my bodies are buried, and I know where his are buried. I don't want him telling any similar stories about me in return. So, for my own sake, I am going to hold my tongue on those. Instead, let me just say that this man and I have been in the trenches together, quite literally. Yes, he is someone who has been a vital member of my office's leadership team for the past 8 years, but my journey with Randy started long, long before anyone ever called me ``Senator Duckworth.'' It started when I was still called ``Lieutenant Duckworth.'' Randy was always 6 to 18 months ahead of me in the hierarchy, as we climbed our way up the Army career ladder from young lieutenants to captains to majors. He was always someone I looked up to, though, at the time, I would never have told him that. In fact, our two assault helicopter companies were often rivals. He was Alpha Company commander; I was Bravo Company commander. We each thought our company was the best. But he always was the kind of pilot, the kind of military tactician, the kind of officer I knew I wanted to be. To this day, when an intern or a young staffer asks me for career advice, I think to myself: They need to find themselves a Randy Sikowski--a mentor whom you can learn from, yet who isn't too far ahead of you in your career, close enough that their footsteps are still visible in the sand in front of you to follow, close enough that their hand is still out on that ladder a step above you--right there--to help you climb up to that next rung. Look, the Army is really, really good at decisiveness, but Randy-- well, Randy has taught me thoughtfulness, and that lesson changed my life. Looking back at our time together in Iraq, I think we worked so well with each other because we complemented one another. He was the battalion operational officer, and I was his assistant. I was the hothead. He was the voice of reason--the adult in the room--who would make me drop and do pushups when I talked back one too many times, much to the delight of our enlisted personnel. We were the team running the Tactical Operations Center, or the TOC, responsible for the life of every crew member and every passenger we put into those 44 aircraft, making sure that our task force completed every mission assigned to us. Then, after my shoot-down, he made me feel like he was still with me in every way that mattered, even though we happened to be a half a world apart--him still in the combat zone and me in my hospital bed, yearning to get back to our unit because he knew me, and he knew that, as I was laying in Walter Reed, I would have traded anything to be back in the blistering heat and suffocating dust of Iraq if it meant just one more day, one more hour, one more mission with my buddies. So Randy lived up to his end of the Soldier's Creed. He made sure I knew that he would never leave his fallen comrade no matter how long it took me to get back up. More than a decade later, when I was fortunate enough to get elected to this Chamber, I gave Randy a call. By then, he was a colonel, a rank I was not ever going to achieve. He had retired from the Army by then. He had earned a break, but here I was, asking him to get back in the game: to take on another tireless, often thankless job to serve his Nation once more--this time, by helping to lead our downstate team. First off, I told him I was a Democrat, but he didn't seem to even consider the politics of it all. All he asked was: What is the job? I replied: Helping out Illinoisans. Looking out for Americans. Taking care of our veterans. He said: That's what I do. And, buddy, truer words have never been spoken. Randy has led our downstate operations with humility, integrity, and a rock-solid sense of purpose. He has been the calm in the chaos. And, well, I was elected in 2016, so there has been a lot of chaos. But through it all, he has been a steady hand, a quiet force, making sure we were always oriented true north and making sure our work actually improved people's lives. It is a rare, special gift that I have been able to serve alongside someone who mentored me. Randy, as you head off into the sunset--or, in your case, the pickleball court--please know how grateful I am for your leadership, for your friendship, for your loyalty--loyalty to this office, yes, but also, more importantly, to this Nation that you have served so well for so long. Congratulations on your retirement, my friend. Thank you for saying yes when I called you that day. Thank you for choosing to continue wearing the flag of our great Nation on your shoulder, facing forward as always, because you cared that much about keeping this country we love as strong as she should be. Thank you for making me a better person. Thank you for showing me who I wanted to be when I grow up. I love you, and I am going to miss you, dammit. I yield the floor.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the scheduled vote begin immediately.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I just want to set the record straight that the VA's population of employees did grow because of the PACT Act, a bill that was voted on and passed in a bipartisan way to save the lives of those veterans who would otherwise be dying if they did not have access to VA healthcare for the illnesses that are caused by their exposure to toxic substances. So let's be clear about why we hired more people within the Department of Veterans Affairs: It was because they were given the permission by this Congress, by this body, in a bipartisan way, passing the PACT Act legislation, which funded care for veterans who were exposed to burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan and toxic substances from their military service. My resolution is about all veterans who serve this Nation. Some of the veterans who have been laid off are park rangers in our National Park Service who are now out of a job--people who were promoted because they did such a good job. One person I was trying to get their job back was actually working with the Veterans Crisis Hotline. They were doing such a good job answering the phones that they were promoted to trainer. As soon as they were promoted to be a trainer to help other people to answer those hotlines, which could help stop veterans death by suicide, they became probationary employees, and they were fired. That is the kind of thing we are talking about--people being laid off from their jobs, veterans who worked hard for this country and worked hard in the Department of Veterans Affairs and other Federal Agencies like the National Park Service, like the EPA, like the DOT. And that is whom Donald Trump and Elon Musk are firing. If you want to save money, I am all for it. I am there with you. I actually passed legislation that saved this country billions of dollars in fraud and waste that occurred in the Department of Defense. I also think that Elon Musk's decision to deport people to India using a C-17 aircraft at the cost of $2 million of taxpayer money, when normally that flight would cost $38,000 if you were to actually charter an aircraft, was an egregious waste of taxpayer dollars. Let's talk about who is wasting money here. Elon Musk is wasting money, and it is Donald Trump wasting money. At the same time, President Trump has become the President who fired the most veterans in our Nation's modern history, over 6,000 fired and counting. Let's set the record straight. Thank you, Mr. President.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Madam President, let me just say that, at the VA, we recently passed the PACT Act, which added well over a million veterans to the rolls to help care for them after they were exposed to toxic substances. This is not the time to cut the funding for the VA. But I am here today to speak on behalf of all veterans who have been fired by President Trump and Elon Musk. Look, Donald Trump couldn't tell you the meaning of the words ``service'' or ``sacrifice'' if he had a dictionary laying open in front of him. So how dare a coward who cried ``bone spurs,'' when his Nation needed him the most, turn his back on those who, unlike him, were actually brave enough to serve our country in uniform. What he has done to our veterans in just a few months since he has been back in office amounts to a total betrayal. For no apparent reason, he has already fired more veterans than any other American President in modern history, over 6,000 and counting. He has been forcing the bravest people you or I could ever meet to have to worry about how they are going to put food on their family's table next week or keep a roof over their heads next month. The biggest predictor of veterans homelessness is not that they are suffering from post-traumatic stress. It is not substance abuse. It is loss of a job. Homelessness is directly linked to joblessness. These folks that Trump fired, these are folks who did one, two, six, even seven tours. They came home and chose to continue serving their Nation by joining the Federal service. These are heroes who deserve our utmost gratitude, not a letter from Elon Musk telling them that they failed to do their jobs and that they are out of those jobs. Instead, Trump and Elon Musk gave them the middle finger and a pink slip. ``Cadet Bone Spurs'' may like to wrap himself in the flag with one hand, but with the other he is signing off on the orders that sell out our veterans to line the pockets of his rich friends, and our warriors deserve better. So this afternoon, Senator Blumenthal, Senator Sanders, and I are introducing three resolutions that demand the reinstatement of every veteran who has been fired and betrayed by Donald Trump. If Republicans actually care about our heroes, like they claim to when they are on the campaign trail, then they will vote with us Democrats and help give our veterans their Federal jobs back. Otherwise, they are making it clear that they would rather bow down at the altar of Donald Trump than stand up for our heroes. As if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 166, which was submitted earlier today. Further, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Just take care of my buddies.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Thank you for what you have said. John McCain was a true hero. He said the same thing to me when I first met him. I do have a question for you, which will come later, but I thought I would tell you the story of how I met John McCain. I was recently wounded. Within weeks of being able to finally sit up for the first time, I was in physical therapy, and Senator McCain came and visited us. The nurses and occupational therapists and physical therapists came running in and said ``Senator McCain, this Captain Duckworth. She is a hero, just like you'' and said to me, ``You are a hero, like Senator McCain. You were both shot down.'' Senator McCain looked at me and said in that voice of his: Didn't take no hero to fly into a missile. The good pilots don't get shot down. And I knew then and there that I really liked him because he was right: The real heroes were the buddies that carried me out of that field in Iraq. The real hero is the sergeant in the rescue bird that carried me out and has to live with the post-traumatic stress. The real heroes are all the men and women who survived and came home and need the care that they have rightfully earned, the care that we are providing for them with the PACT Act, a bill that you supported, a bill that you spoke up for, even while Members, our colleagues across the aisle, many of them, said it was too expensive. And at a time when we should be expanding the PACT Act, when we should be recognizing more of the illnesses and injuries that came out of service around burn pits and toxic substances, you have a President who is cutting the VA, who wants to cut those jobs, who wants to go after our veterans' benefits, who, just like Elon Musk has said, sees veterans as people with their hands out. We don't have our hands out. We are simply asking for what this country promised us. Where were you, Mr. President; where were you, Elon, when this country asked for someone to serve? When this country asked: Who among you will leave your family, leave your friends, leave your neighbors, and put on her colors and defend her--not for your mom, not for your dad, not for your family members, but for strangers who will never know your name, who will never know your sacrifice? Who among you will do that? Thank God that from Lexington and Concord, from Iwo Jima, from la Drang Valley, from Kandahar, from Fallujah there were Americans who stood up and said: I will. I will defend this great Nation. I will wear her colors with pride. And all we have to do as a nation is live up to one tiny little percentage of that sacrifice that they made, let them have the benefits that they have earned, and yet Donald Trump and Elon Musk are cutting those benefits. The biggest predictor--the biggest predictor--of veterans' homelessness is not post-traumatic stress disorder. It is not a health condition. The biggest predictor of veterans' homelessness is lack of employment, not having a job. That begins the spiral downward for veterans that ends up with them becoming homeless. And I will tell everyone in these Chambers and in this Nation: We are all dishonored when a veteran must lay their head down on the very same street that he or she defended, to sleep that night. We are all dishonored. The VA has done tremendous work--tremendous work--to fight veterans' homelessness, and that has been a bipartisan effort. And these cuts-- these cuts that are costing veterans their jobs--are going to set some of those veterans, unfortunately, on that path to homelessness. These cuts are going to mean that those veterans homelessness programs that would prevent others from becoming unhoused--those programs will not be able to take care of all the veterans, the demand. I am already seeing it. I spent this past weekend in Missouri, at the Cochran VA Medical Center, hearing about the challenges that they are facing. They need to expand. They don't need to shrink. They said there are going to be another 25,000 veterans moving into the area. They actually have to expand their services. And yet Elon Musk, enabled by Donald Trump, is cutting veterans' jobs, veterans' benefits because, according to them, veterans aren't heroes; we are suckers and losers. Well, I beg to differ. I beg to differ. I am sure that my colleague from New Jersey knows that firing 80,000 employees from the Department of Veterans Affairs wouldn't just cause longer delays for veterans. It will doom our VA's ability to process claims and the influx of claims under the PACT Act, a law that is helping to ensure veterans who were exposed to toxins while serving can get the care that they have earned, with more than 1 million claims already approved in the short time since it has become law. I can't think of a single good reason to hurt so many veterans, and I will just ask the Senator from New Jersey: Can you think of any reasons?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Will the Senator yield for a question?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I don't know what kind of food you eat on that vegan diet of yours, but I need to figure out more of that vegan diet. One place where we can and do care that unites us as a nation is the role of our Nation's veterans, the heroes who have sacrificed for us-- although, with this President, I guess he doesn't hold veterans in the same esteem. As someone who has bled for this Nation, I guess I join the ranks of the suckers and losers who have bled and died for this Nation, in the President's estimation. But I just wanted to start off by saying thank you, again, Senator Booker, for all that you are doing as you hold the floor today but also every other day to underline the pain and damage that Donald Trump and Elon Musk are doing not just to our country but to middle-class Americans throughout our country. Tragically, that harm even extends to our Nation's veterans, who have sacrificed so much to protect this country and keep Americans safe, who should be shielded from this needless chaos and uncertainty. Senator Booker, I know you are well aware that this administration is firing more veterans than any other administration in modern history. It has been reported that this administration, in its first few months in office, has fired approximately 6,000 veterans from Federal service across this country. This list of firings, especially at the VA, has resulted in operations for our veterans being canceled. We have seen reports of the caregivers hotline--a hotline that was set up to support the caregivers who provide medical care given to their loved ones who served and sacrificed and are now disabled--there are delays in that hotline being answered because Donald Trump fired all of these veterans. There are people who support the crisis hotline who were also fired. I know this because some of them were my constituents and asked for help. I had one individual who served in the military for over two decades and did such a good job on the crisis hotline as a frontline person answering the phone, trying to prevent their brothers and sisters from the idea of suicide--they did such a good job that they were promoted to be a trainer, they were promoted to be a supervisor, which then made them probationary, and they were fired. We were able to get some of these people their jobs back. Some of them are still out there without their jobs. This is what Donald Trump and Elon Musk have already done. This does not help our Nation's veterans. This does not help our Nation's heroes. If anything, it is a betrayal to them. It is a betrayal, a cruel betrayal, to the men and women who bravely answered the call to serve our country in uniform--a call that this President dodged five different times when he had the opportunity to serve. Men and women in uniform came home from serving, and many of them chose to continue their service to our country as Federal employees. How are Elon and Trump thanking these brave, selfless Americans? They are doing it by showing them the door and leaving them wondering how they will be able to afford next week's groceries or next month's rent, forcing them to look for new jobs. The Senator from New Jersey and I are both working together to help our heroes get their jobs back, which is why I have introduced the Protect Veterans Jobs Act to reinstate all veterans who were wrongly fired from their Federal jobs by Trump and Musk. It is a critical bill to help those who have already been fired. But according to recent reports, Trump and Musk are just getting started. From everything that we have seen, they are planning on firing another 80,000 VA employees, almost a third of whom are veterans themselves. So that is going to be another 25 veterans on the chopping block on top of the 6,000 who have already been fired. It is a complete betrayal from Trump and from Musk. Firing these VA employees will even harm veterans who Trump is not firing because it is going to force them to wait longer to see their healthcare providers. It is going to make them wait longer to have their disability claims adjudicated. It is going to make them wait longer to have someone pick up their calls at the Veterans Crisis Line. It is going to make them wait even longer and their loved ones wait even longer to have their burial and funeral expense reimbursement requests processed and so much more, all while the VA's backlog for unprocessed claims continues to grow. I have another question for you, but first, for the Senator from New Jersey, I was wondering if you could tell us if you have heard from your veterans who have been fired, if you have heard from your veterans who have seen their services delayed in New Jersey and around the country?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Will you yield for a question?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. You were on a roll. You were on a roll.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Will the Senator yield for a question?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. They don't have the well-being of the American people at their heart. What I would love to hear from the Senator from New Jersey is, would you agree that what we should be doing right now is not attacking farmers and cutting commodity programs and cutting and freezing funding for USAID that provides a market for farm product, but we should be working on passing a farm bill?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I would like to ask the Senator from New Jersey a question pertaining to the farm bill. You speak to uncertainty. One of the things I heard from my agricultural sector and my farmers, the Farm Bureau in Illinois, is that desperate need to pass--for this body to pass a farm bill, especially when it comes to the Crop Insurance Program, as well as, again, retaining SNAP benefits. I do think that crop insurance is something that our farmers care deeply about. It is a tool that they use to make sure that they are able to survive when there are bad crop years, whether that is through disease, whether that is through drought or floods. Our farmers certainly--this is a program for them to sustain themselves and be able to look out for themselves. So it is a personal responsibility on the part of farmers. It is especially important for young farmers who are just running out. Those margins are just so tiny. And when you take away the commodity program and USAID, when you take away the SNAP program, then you don't provide them with crop insurance, you are going to lose those family farms. What is going to happen? Large agriculture businesses are going to take over.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I have a further question for the Senator from New Jersey.

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Thank you. I think the issue of contracts is especially important because so much of these cuts are claimed to cut waste in government spending. But we have a law on the books that says if we don't make payments according to existing contracts, then we have to pay the interest on those payments that we are late in providing. So if we, for example, cut $2 billion or freeze funding payment on $2 billion in contracts as we did with USAID, that means we are going to have to pay, say, 2-percent interest rate, $16 billion in interest. I don't see where that is a saving for taxpayers. That is a waste of taxpayer dollars. I think that is something we should be talking about, and I also think that, as you were mentioning, the issue with our farmers, they are important to our national security. The SNAP program is a good example of it. That program was instituted after World War II. We had the very famous example of Audie Murphy, who was the most highly decorated soldier coming out of World War II. He could not pass initial tests to enlist into the Army during World War II. He didn't weigh enough due to malnutrition post the Great Depression. He created the SNAP program to make sure America's young people were fed, were no longer malnourished, so they could get food in our schools while going to school because it was good for the U.S. military to have a workforce that could enlist in the military and meet the standards. That is the SNAP program, and that has been a program that has sustained our farmers over time. I think that we are losing sight of that. So my question to the Senator from New Jersey is to hear a little bit more--have you heard about the SNAP program and also the work the farmers in New Jersey have been doing in terms of organic and sustainable farming, which is really where the beginning of the organic and sustainable farming movement has begun in this country?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Would the Senator yield for another question?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Thank you, Senator Booker, for taking this important stand and for doing so much to make it clear how much pain Donald Trump and Elon Musk are inflicting on the American people in every sector of our society. I am going to be asking you a question about what you heard from agriculture businesses in your State about the damage this administration is doing and the jobs that either have been or will be lost as a result. I thought I would give you some background on what I am hearing as well. I want to focus this body's attention on our Nation's farmers and ranchers who seem to be getting punched day after day, week after week by the Trump-Musk oligarchy. Whether it is their harmful tariffs that hurt our soy and corn farmers, canceling and freezing more than $1 billion in funding for schools and food banks that purchase food from local farmers, or halting reimbursement and contract payments that our farmers already owed. The Senator from New Jersey and I are both working together to undo some of the most harmful impacts of these disastrous decisions, including joining forces to push his Honor Farmers Contract forward. We are starting to hear reports by farmers how damaging the Musk-Trump dismantling of USAID is to jobs and businesses right here in America. For example, I don't know if the Senator has heard, but in North Carolina, they had $2.2 billion in USAID awards, including for 27 large-scale farmers who were fulfilling orders to humanitarian food assistance and four universities who were receiving agriculture research funding. More than 300 North Carolina workers have lost their jobs as a result of this freeze. In Georgia, they had over $389 million in USAID awards, including nine large-scale farmers fulfilling orders for humanitarian food assistance and six universities receiving agriculture research funding. Arkansas had over $210 million in USAID awards, including purchases of rice, grain, and beans from our farmers. Florida has lost $91 million in USAID awards, including $38 million for the University of Florida to improve livestock productivity and food security in developing countries. Texas lost over $48 million in USAID awards, including nine large- scale farmers fulfilling orders for humanitarian food assistance and eight universities receiving agriculture research funding. The list goes on and on. My neighbors in Iowa, over time now, have lost over $4 million in USDA food commodity sales. They have gained--they had a total of over $149 million in purchases through USDA and other programs for USAID. Illinois has lost $245 million in aid that--in farm income, that would go toward USAID and aid programs. I think that our farmers have been hit with body blow after body blow from this administration, an administration that in their first term and even in the second term promised they would look out for America. I have to say to my friend from New Jersey, I don't think that this administration has lived up to their promises to farmers. Remember that a Nation that cannot feed itself--if we lose those family farms, if we lose our ag sector--we cannot lead the free world if we cannot feed ourselves. And, frankly, farmers have been hit over and over again. These incoming tariffs are going to be a disaster for our farmers. I was in south central and southern Illinois across the river from Missouri talking to our farmers in St. Clair County, IL. They tell me the tariffs are going to affect their products being sold overseas. Our top products in Illinois: corn, soybean, pork. We are also the largest grower of pumpkins. If you get the Libby can of pumpkin at Halloween time and Christmastime, Thanksgiving, that is thanks to Illinois. If you ever want to come, I will take you out to the pumpkin fields. They are the best pumpkins in the country. But frankly, they are being hurt over and over again. So they are going to see the prices on their commodities affected. They can't sell their products overseas to the top countries that purchase their product. At the same time, their inputs--the fertilizer and the equipment that they need--will be more expensive. Tariffs against Canada, in terms of steel and aluminum, is affecting John Deere. John Deere--hundreds of years old, an American company founded in the heartland of this great Nation laying off people. We have to do better by our farmers. Our farmers have been betrayed time and time again by this Trump administration. They promise big things and come in cutting programs like USAID. They hurt our farmers, their bottom line. I sat down and met with many farmers who are seventh generation, eighth generation, watching the teenage son of the farmer and they are afraid they are not going to have a farm there anymore. Their products and margins are so tiny, they don't think they are going to make it. My question to my colleague from New Jersey is what are you hearing from farmers and why do you think this administration is taking so many actions that hurt them and hurt American jobs?

Ms. DUCKWORTH. Will the Senator yield for a question?

Ms. DUCKWORTH

Ms. DUCKWORTH. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Ms. DUCKWORTH.--then they will vote yes on this bill and help give our veterans their jobs back. Otherwise, they are making it clear that they would rather bow down at the altar of Donald Trump than stand up for our heroes.